HAMMY AND WIFE: Ireland and the UK: Part 1

We started our Ireland/UK adventure in Dublin. The Guinness was flowing and the city was painted green, giving us the promise of good luck. We even saw a leprechaun! This Dublin trip however, was unlike any other that we've taken... because we went with a group of our friends! These are the guys we hang out with most. Unfortunately, our couple from Tennessee couldn't make it, so they were sorely missed. It was an awesome trip and we had our first fish n' chips here!

A bit about Dublin and Ireland:

Dublin was first established in 988 AD by the Vikings, later being captured by the Danes and then by the Anglo-Normans with Henry II in charge. Ireland was ruled by England for most of existence, and mostly gained independence in 1922.

St. Patrick's Cathedral, 1191 AD

Us in front of the cathedral

Lindsey and Andrea

St. Anne's Church, 1720 AD

Happy friends with full bellies

Ryan's magnificent vision of french fry art brought to life

The group in the Temple Bar area

Statue of a woman who revealed too much

First pub in Dublin. We went here one night and heard a live band play some country music. This is the closest we got to hearing live traditional music in a pub.

Liffey River

Statue of James Larkin, who started a workers union and unsuccessfully negotiated with the transport companies, which led to 25,000+ starving people without jobs and 3 fatalities before the workers gave up defeated.

Day trip to the Wicklow mountains and Glendalough, which is an early medieval monastic settlement founded in the 500's, located in a glacial valley. The grounds are filled with graves. As of March 2009, there are only 6 more people who are allowed to be buried here. The graves date back all the way to the 6th century.